OJCS Receives TELUS and WE Schools Kindness Award
OJCS is the award recipient of the TELUS and WE Schools ‘Rise Above’ Kindness Award for our dedication to fostering a community of kindness! The $1500 donation was awarded to OJCS in recognition of our commitment to making our classrooms and school community a safe, inclusive, and friendly environment for all students. How have we done this?
- Our OJCS ‘Community of Kindness’ week in November (formerly called ‘Bullying Prevention Week’). One of our school goal’s this year is for students to develop the skills to have healthy and respectful peer relationships. You can read more about the week here: http://ojcsstudentlife.
edublogs.org/2018/11/28/ojcs- community-of-kindness-week- hevei-na-im/ - Another initiative is that we created our own ‘7 Habits of Kindness’ prototype team who have focused on weaving Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits from his book ‘The Leader in Me’ into our school culture. The 7 Habits focus on developing the character of each person- read more about it here. This has included initiatives such as our monthly assemblies to introduce each habit and sharing resources and teacher PD around the 7 Habits. Each month Dr.Mitzmacher blogs about the ‘Habit of Kindness’ we are focusing on.
- Discussions around the importance of being kind toward one another continues to be part of our curriculum- Mrs.Thompson and the grade 5 class completed a class novel study on the book ‘Wonder’. The students had to complete a WONDERful Acts of Kindness Challenge where students were challenged to complete 4 random acts of kindness. When students completed their act, they gave that person a ‘Pay It Forward’ card in hopes that the person who received the card would carry out there own act of kindness.
- Collaborating with Shannon LaValley from JFS, many of our students have participated in ‘Kindness’ workshops throughout the year to learn more about the importance of being kind and developing each of the 7 Habits.
These are just some of the many initiatives happening at OJCS to help reinforce our North Star that ‘we are each responsible for one another’. We are so proud of the students for continuing to cultivate our OJCS ‘Community of Kindness’ and for being recognized by TELUS and WE Schools for their dedication. Continue to visit our Student Life blog to hear how our 7 Habits Team will continue to Rise Above to #EndBullying and build our OJCS ‘Community of Kindness’ with the donation.
Loading...
Reload document 
Open in new tab OJCS ‘Community of Kindness’ Week- Hevei Na-im
From November 19-25th schools and students across Ontario participated in the Bullying Awareness and Prevention Week to help promote safe schools and a positive learning environment for all students. OJCS was no exception and held our own Community of Kindness week. Each day we focused on a different theme and our own grade 6 class prepared elementary and middle school resources and discussion questions for the school.
Monday was our Community of Kindness Week Kick-Off as we focused on the theme of Chesed/What is bulling? Why is it important to be kind? Author and motivational speaker Josee Lindsay came to speak to our school about the importance of being kind and how small acts of kindness matter. She shared her book, Super Spark, with the students and how each individual has their own strengths to celebrate. Thank you to our amazing student MC’s from Knesset, Jessica and Adam, for leading the kick off ceremony.
On Tuesday, our theme was Gemillut Chasadim ba-Kehillah/Being Kind is a Community Responsibility. Students in the middle school participated in a workshop with Sensei Domenic from Douvris Karate to learn more about our important OJCS North Star that we are each responsible for one another.
On Wednesday, our theme was Arevut/Send the Msg: Be a Responsible Digital Citizen. How to be kind to others even when using technology is an important skill to learn and discuss. We need to intentionally teach children how to engage in the online world in a positive way.
Finally, on Thursday our theme was focused on BE the Change. Our school Social Worker, Shannon LaValley, and librarian, Brigitte, started their ‘Well-being Book Series’ with our students in kindergarten to grade 4. Students will be invited to the library to hear a story linked to Stephen Covey’s Leader in Me 7 Habits and discuss strategies for continuing to develop each habit.
Grade 1 students also participated in a Kindness Workshop with Morah Lianna and Miss Coleman. They learned about the importance of filling an invisible kindness bucket that everyone carries!
Our ‘Community of Kindness’ week was an important reminder that we are each responsible for one another!
Kindness Workshop Series
This week our series of Kindness Workshops kicked off with grade 3 on Monday morning. Beginning with the end in mind (*7 Habits alert!), our workshop goal was to learn about how we are each responsible for the well-being of one another and how to think win-win (*7 Habits alert!) and work as a team. Shannon LaValley, our invaluable school Social Worker, read the book The Invisible Boy by Patrice Barton and the class discussed the importance of making everyone feel important and valued.
Afterword the students worked in groups to complete different team-building tasks. They collaborated, listened to the ideas of others, and encouraged their team members with positive comments.
The workshops continued today with grade 5 and 6 also learning about how to build healthy friendships. Grade 5 were active participants in a discussion about how to establish positive friendships and how to solve conflict, while grade 6 read and discussed the book The Three Questions by Jon Muth.
One thing that is evident from our workshops- we learn better together. The students asked questions, engaged in meaningful conversations, and learned about how to have healthy relationships- which is essential to everyone having the best school day possible!